Today Sasol opened its R70 million Fuels Application Centre (SFAC) at Capricorn Park in Cape Town at a function attended by the Minister of Science and Technology, Naledi Pandor and Western Cape Premier, Helen Zille.

 
The facility, which will facilitate state-of-the-art fuels research and development, is the company's biggest intervention to test the impact of its range of synthetic and crude oil derived fuels on vehicle emission and performance.
 
The centre is one of a few such test facilities in the world and the first of its kind in southern Africa. It is an extension of the existing fuels research facility situated at the Sasol R&D facility in Sasolburg and complements the work done at the Sasol Advanced Fuels Laboratory at the University of Cape Town.
 
Using some of the most advanced engine testing and emissions measurement technologies, the centre will ensure Africa will compete with the world's best fuels research facilities.
 
Within a well-controlled and safe testing environment research at the facility will be directed at deepening understanding of vehicle emissions, along with their impact on the environment unlike at similar international test centres where the focus is largely on routine engine production verification, certification and component development.
 
Sasol Technology Managing Director, Willem Louw explains: "This facility has six engine test cells that are used for research and testing. Inside each cell is a specific engine that is coupled to a dynamometer (an electrically controlled brake to simulate vehicle operating conditions) so that the engine can be run under the entire scope of operating conditions that it would in its normal application."
 
Research teams are interested in both the performance of the fuel in the engine and the gasses and particulate matter that are emitted from the exhaust pipe. Three of the six cells have the ability to analyse these gases accurately, making it possible to determine the effects of various fuel formulations on exhaust emissions in an effort to help minimize Green House Gas (GHG) emissions.
 
Speaking at the launch Sasol CE, Pat Davies, said the centre will showcase local innovation. "This Sasol Fuels Application Centre will facilitate state-of-the-art fuels research and development while showcasing the best of our home-grown technology, from the African continent, to the rest of the world", Davies said.
 
Sasol is proactively investigating and researching the optimum mix of solutions to reduce our carbon footprint. Whether those solutions come from our work in renewable energy projects such as solar, wind, biomass and algae power, or through our focused research in the field of Carbon Capture and Storage, collaboration and innovation will reveal the solutions for the future. This R70 million facility will provide a fitting platform for world-class R&D innovative solutions that will help usher in the next generation of cleaner fuels.
 
Innovation is also an important contributor to providing solutions for creating sustainable jobs and improving living standards - both of which are key priorities for our country and Sasol.
 
In the skills development arena, Sasol has already trained 111 of the 900 we committed to training over a period of 5 years to full artisan status as part the Technical Skills Business Partnership (TSBP) which supports the aims of the National Business Initiative and the Joint Initiative for Priority Skills South Africa (JIPSA). The six participating firms making up the TSBP have set a goal of training 5400 people for the national pool over and above their own skills needs.
 
Sasol also committed to investing R250 million with South African universities over a 10 year period to generate expertise in South Africa that ensures long term availability of world class human resources among chemists and engineers that will in part assist in the effective execution of R&D projects such as the SFAC.
 
Minister Pandor commented that, "Our economic success will be shaped by the degree to which we successfully anticipate the future. Our future success as a country depends on our ability to develop new technologies. It will be the investment that companies like Sasol make to develop a new generation of scientists that will allow us to carry on the legacy of innovation that they have in fuel technology."
 
The SFAC research facility will lead Sasol's journey towards the development of environmentally-friendly fuels of the future. "We are serious about reducing greenhouse gas emissions that result from the use of our products. In short, we want to help reduce emissions in ways that result in least cost to society and our economy," concludes Louw.
 
ends.
 
Pictures

Minister Pandor

From left: Pat Davies (Sasol Limited CE), Minister Pandor, Premier Zille, Willem Louw (Sasol Technology MD)